Vacuum cleaner with auxiliary suction tube and automatically controlled brush drive



April 18, 1950 J. B. KIRBY 2,504,346

VACUUM CLEANER wrm AUXILIARY SUCTION TUBE AND AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED BRUSH DRIVE Filed Aug. 16, 1944 .3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR V James B. Kirby ATTORNEYS April 8, 1950 J. B. KlRBY 2,504,846

vmuum CLEANER WITH AUXILIARY SUCTION TUBE AND AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED BRUSH DRIVE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 16, 1944 ATTORNEYS M n B a M J M Apnl 18, 1950 J. B. KIRBY 2,504,846

VACUUM CLEANER WITH AUXILIARY SUCTION TUBE AND AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED BRUSH DRIVE Filed Aug. 16, 1944 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR James .8. Kirby ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 18, 1950 VACUUM C AUXILIARY suc- LEANEB WITH TION TUBE AND AUTOMATICALLY CON- TBOLLED BRUSH DRIVE James B. Kirby, West Bichfield, Ohio Application August 16, 1944, Serial No. 549.685

Claims. (01. -319) This invention relates to vacuum cleaners of the type having a dirigible head that carries a floor cleaning suction nozzle and suction creating means and that has a pivoted handle by means of which the head may be pushed along a floor surface.

Vacuum cleaners of the type referred to are usually provided with a rotary brush in the floor nomle that is driven by a belt from the fan shaft. Such cleaners have sometimes been provided with a flexible hose attachment for an auxiliary furniture cleaning nozzle that is adapted to be connected to the suction inlet of the fan casing and cut off communication between the suction inlet and the floor nozzle. Such auxiliary suction nozzle attachments have been inconvenient because of the fact that the attachment is a spare part not carried by the cleaner, and because connecting the flexible tube to the cleaner is difficult by reason of the necessity of disconnecting the brush driving belt from the fan shaft before making the connection.

An important object of the present invention is to provide a cleaner of the type referred to with an auxiliary suction tube and nozzle that is permanently connected thereto and with ad- Justable means for connecting either the floor nozzle or the auxiliary nozzle to the suction inlet of the fan casing.

A further object of theinvention is to provide a means for disconnecting the main nozzle from and connecting the tubular handle to the suction creating means.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a vacuum cleaner having a main suction nozzle and an auxiliary suction nozzle and a valve for connecting the suction creating means to either nozzle.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a cleaner having a valye controlled auxiliary nozzle with a power driven brush in the main nozzle which is controlled y the valve.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a power driven brush for the suction nozzle that is controlled by the pressure within the nozzle so as to be driven only when there is a vacuum.

within the suction nozzle.

With the above and other objects in view, the

invention may be said to comprise a vacuum invention pertains.

Reference should be had to the accompanying drgiwlilngs forming a part of this specification. in w c Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a vacuum cleaner embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation of a flexible suction tube that is telescopically mounted in the handle of the cleaner;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary side elevation on an enlarged scale. showing the outer end portion of the handle, with a portion of the handle, flitering bag and extension tube broken away and shown in section;

Fig. 4=is a fragmentary side elevation of the inner end of the flexible suction tube, a portion of the guide ferrule being broken away and shown in section;

Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the vacuum cleaner head with a portion of the housing broken away and shown in section:

Fig. 6 is a section taken on the line indicated at 6-6 in Fig. 'I;

Fig. 7 is a side elevation of the suction head with the lower portion thereof broken away and shown in central vertical section;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary vertical section through the lower portion of the suction head, and

Fig. 9 is a section taken on the line indicated at 99 in Fig. '8.

As shown in Fig. l, the vacuum cleaner of the present invention has a suction head provided with a housing I that is provided with a wide floor nozzle portion 2 at its forward end and which has an inclined fan casing 3. A motor housing 4 carried by the fan casing 3 projects rearwardly from the fancasing within the housing I. The suction head is supported upon front and rear wheels 5 and t mounted on the housing I, the front wheels 5 being mounted behind the end portions of the nozzle 2 and the rear wheels 8 being mounted on the rear end of the housing I. The suction head is pushed over the floor surface by means of a tubular handle I that is pivotally connected to the housing I and the handle 1 provides a support for a filtering bag 0. The handle 1 extends through a fltering bag t, the bag having an opening at its rear end that. is provided with a resilient bead t that snaps into engagement with a grooved collar It mounted on the handle 1 adjacent its upper end. The head 9 forms a dust tight joint between the bag I and collar Ill and the collar II has a dust tight sliding connection with the handle I, air pressure within the bag during operation of the cleaner serving to hold the collar I3 near the outer end of the handle.

A hand grip II is attached to the outer end of the tubular handle I and is offset beneath the outer end of the tubular handle I, the hand grip having a laterally lprojecting attaching portion |2 which is secured upon the end of the tubular handle I. The hand grip |I carries a trigger switch I3 that controls the current supplied to the fan driving motor through an extension cord I4 and an insulated cable I3 extending from the switch I3 to the motor and attached to the under side of the filtering bag 3. A flexible tube I3 is telescopically mounted in the tubular handle 1, the inner end of the tube being provided, with a rigid guide ferrule II having a flange I3 at its inner end which has a sliding fit within the tubular handle 1. The flange II also serves as a stop to limit the outward movement of the tube I3, being engageable with the attaching portion I2 of the hand grip when the flexible tube It is withdrawn to its full extent. The tube l3 carries an auxiliary nozzle I! at its outer end which is adapted to be used for cleaning furniture. walls and woodwork and the like, means which will be hereinafter described being provided for connecting the tubular handle to the inlet of the fan casing. The tube I 3 is normally retracted within the handle I and the nozzle I9 overlies the switch carrying portion of the hand grip II.

The housing I is divided into front and rear sections which are Joined substantially in a central plane with the fan casing, the two sections being provided with attaching lugs 2|) which receive bolts 2| which clamp the two sections to gether. The fan casing 3 has a central inlet opening 22 in the front wall thereof which communicates with a passage 23 extending upwardly from the center of the floor nozzle 2. The fan casin 3 also has a central opening in its rear wall which is of a diameter suflicient to receive the motor housing 4 which is adapted to be inserted in the opening in the rear wall of the fan casing before the front and rear housing sections are secured together, the motor housing 4 being provided with a marginal flange 25 at its forward end, which engages the interior of the fan casing wall around the opening 24, the flange 25 being secured to the fan casing by suitable means such as screws 23. The motor in the housing 4 has. a shaft 21 that projects into the fan casing 3 where a fan 23 is secured thereto. I

The forward section of the housing I is a casting which forms the floor nozzle 2 and the forward half of the fan casing 3. The rear section of the housing forms the rear half of the fan casing and has integral side skirts 29 extending rearwardly from the opposite side portions of the fan casing 3 which cover opposite sides of the motor housing 4. The side skirts 29 are substantially triangular in form, tapering from a wide base to an apex immediately behind the top of the fan casing 3, and the housing has an inclined rear wall 30 connecting the rear ends of the side skirts 29. A filtering bag mounting ring 3| is mounted upon the rear end of the housing I and has an outwardly curved retaining flange 32 which provides an external recess to receive a contractible, resilient bead 33 surrounding the forward opening of the filtering bag 3. The mounting ring 3| is connected to the housing I by means of a hinge 34 adjacent the top of the housing, andis detachably secured in place against the face of the wall 30 by means of screws 35 which are carried by the ring and screwed into threaded open- 7 ings in the wall 33 adjacent the lower edge thereof. The ring 3| is held tightly against the face of the wall by means of screws 35 and leakage of air between the ring and wall is prevented by means of a sealing ring 33 mounted in the face of the ring 3| which engages with the wall 33.

The fan casing 3 has an outlet passage 31 which extends tangentially of the casing 3 and along one side of the casing to an opening 33 in the wall 30 which lies within the mounting ring 3| and near the top of the wall 30. In normal operation of the machine, the air drawn through the suction nozzle 2 passes through the fan and is discharged to the filtering bag 8 through the opening 33. Since the dirt laden air passes into the bag near the top of the mounting ring 3|, the dirt can accumulate on the portions of the wall 33 and of the bag 3 adjacent the lower portion of the ring, and the bag may be emptied by releasing the screws 35 and lifting the lower portion of the ring off the wall 30 after the bag has been shaken to deposit the dirt in the lower end thereof.

An auxiliary conduit 39 extends laterally around the side of the fan casing 3 opposite that around which the discharge passage 31 extends and is connected to the passage 24 leading from the floor nozzle 2 to the inlet of the fan casing 3. The conduit 39 extends through the wall 3|] and terminates in a laterally facing bearing portion 40 in which a pipe elbow section 4| is rotatably mounted. The elbow section 4| is attached to the inner end of the tubular handle I and turns in the bearing portion 40 when the handle is swung upwardly or downwardly. The elbow section 4| has a boss 42 which is centrally disposed with respect to the bearing portion 40 and which receives a pivot pin 43 that is axially alined with the bearing portion 43. The pivot pin 43 is carried by the inner end of a screw 44 that is adjustable in a bracket 45 attached to the wall 3.. Screw 44 serves to press the elbow 4| against the bearing portion 40 and the pivot pin 43 keeps the elbow centered with respect to the bearing portion. When it is desired to remove the handle.-

screw 44 may be opened to retract the pin 43 and allow the elbow 4| to be moved laterally out of engagement with the bearing portion 40.

In order to control the flow of air through the main nozzle 2 and the auxiliary nozzle I9, 9. twoway valve 46 is provided at the junction of the passages 24 and 39. The valve 46 is a drum valve having a cylindrical body portion extending from the front wall of the passage 24 to the fan casing, the valve being open at its inner end to the inlet op ning of the fan casing and having a closed outerend 41, which is provided with a diametrical flange 43 which forms a handle by means of which the valve may be turned. The body portion of the valve 46 ismtatably mounted in a bearing portion 53 of the housing I, in the opening of the front wall within which the valve fits and within an arcuate flange 5| adjacent the.

margin of the inlet opening 23. The valve 46 has a flange 52 at its outer end which engages with the front wall of the housing around the valve receiving opening and the body of the valve has an arcuate peripheral opening 53 which extends through nearly half the circumference of the valve. The valve is held against axial movement and its angular movement limited by means of a groove 54 in its periphery which is engaged by a pin 35 carried by the bearing portion 50 of the housing. The groove 54 is substantially in length to permit movement of the valve from the asoesse extreme position shown in Fig. 6, where the auxiliary passage II is closed and the passage 2| t0 the suction nozzle 2 is open, to the opposite extreme position in which the suction nozzle 2 is cut oil from the suction fan and the tubular handle I is connected to the fan casing inlet through the passage ll. Whenever it is desired to use the auxiliary nozzle I! the valve 40 is turned by means of the hand grip flange is to connect the handle 'I to the fan casing inlet. The fan then draws air through the handle I and the nozzle I. and tube ii that is telescopically received in the handle I. The operator may then pull the flexible tube It out of the handle I and pass the nozzle ll over objects to be cleaned, using the flexible tube It to drag the cleaner along the floor.

The suction nozzle 2 is preferably provided with a rotary brush it that is operated by the fan motor, and since it is not desirable to have the brush is operated while the suction nozzle 2 is disconnected from the fan casing, means is provided for controlling the brush driving means by the valve 48. As shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the brush 56 is driven by means of a belt I] which extends through an opening 88 in the rear wall of the floor nozzle 2 and over a pulley I! that is mounted within a housing an attached to the rear wall of the suction nozzle 2, the housing ll forming a recess in the suction nozzle adjacent the nozzle opening to receive the driving pulley 52. The driving pulley 59 is attached to. the inner end of a horizontal shaft 6| that is supported in a bearing member 62 mounted in a side wall of the housing 60. The shaft 6| pro- Jects past the outer face of the bearing member .2 and has a friction disk 83 clamped to its outer end by means of a nut 64. Between the friction disk 63 and the housing 60 the shaft 8| carries a pulley 65 which is freely rotatable on ball bearings 66 interposed between the pulley II and the shaft ii. The ball bearing 66 has an inner race ring 61 that is slidable on the shaft I and this race ring is engaged by a shifter collar 68, also slidable on the shaft and mounted between the pulley 65 and the bearing member 62. The pulley 65 is continuously driven during the operation of the cleaner by a belt "that extends over the pulley 65 over guide pulleys it carried on the housing I and over a driving pulley ll attached to the rear end of the motor shaft 21. Collar 68 is pressed outwardly by a spring "interposed between the collar and the bearing member 62 and its outward movement is restrained by an arm, I3 of a shifter lever. connected to the housing 60 by a pivot It and having along arm 16 substantially parallel with the rear wall of the suction nozzles The outer end of the arm 16 engages a collar 11 that is held against the inner side of a nut 18 on a stem I! attached to a plunger 80 that is slidably mounted in a cylindrical chamber-ll formed in the rear wall of the suction nozzle and open at its inner end to the interior of the nozzle- A head 82 is screwed into the outer end of-the chamber II. This head is in the form of a spider having a central hub portion 83 through which the stem 19 extends and in which the stem I! has a sliding fit. Around the hub portion Q3 the spider is provided with a series of holes M which open the outer portion of the chamber to atmosphere. A spring as interposed between the spider 82 and the collar 11 normally holds the collar 11 against the nut 18 and the spring II is of suiilcient strength to hold the collar II in retracted position where the pulley I ts free from the friction disk 83, the plunger It being normally held against the spider 22, as shown in Fig. 9.

When the nozzle 2 is connected to the fan casing inlet and the fan is operated with the nozzle 2 in engagement with a carpet, a vacuum is created in the suction nozzle 2 which causes the plunger .0 to move inwardly, and operates the lever 14 to shift the arm I! outwardly, releasing the collar I and permitting the spring 12 to presses the pulley '88 against the friction disk It, so that, as soon as an effective vacuum is established in the nozzle 2, the brush- 56 will be automatically connected to the driving motor. However, when the valve 48 is shifted to close the passage between the suction nomle 2 and the fan inlet, the operation of the fan will have no effect upon the brush driving mechanism for the reason that no vacuum-will be created in the suction nozzle. The automatic control of the brush driving mechanism is advantageous in the normal operation of the cleaner on a floor surface since it relieves the initial load on the driving motor, due to the fact that the driving connection to the brush is established only after an operating vacuum is established in the suction nozzle. This reduces the initial load on the motor, which operates first to bring the fan up to speed before the brush operating torque is imposed upon the motor shaft.

It is to be understood that variations and modifications of the specific device herein shown and described for purposes of illustration, may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim is: 1. A suction cleaner comprising a fan casing having .a suction inlet, a suction nozzle connected to said inlet, a fan in said casing, a motor for driving said fan, a brush in said nozzle. a driving connection from said motor to said brush including a clutch comprising two friction elements one movable toward and away from the other, a spring pressing said movable element toward engaging position, a second spring pressing said movable element in the op posite direction and normally holding the same in disengaged position, and means operated by suction in said nozzle for decreasing the pressure exerted by said second spring on said movable element 50 as to permit the first sp ng to engage'the clutch elements.

. 2. A suction cleaner comprising a ,fan casing having a suction inlet, a suction nozzle connected to said inlet, a fan in said casing, a motor for driving said fan, a brush in said nozzle, a driving connection from said motor to said brush including disengageable driving element's,

means for normally holding said elements disengaged, and a fluid pressure operated member operably connected to said nozzle and to one of said driving elements and movable in response to suction in said nozzle for engaging said drivable in response to suction in said nozzle for l engaging said clutch in oppositon to said spring. 4. A suction cleaner comprising a fan casing, a suction conduit connected to the casing inlet, a suction nozzle connected to said conduit, a tan in said casing, a motor for driving said fan, a branch conduit connected to said suction conduit, means for connecting the branch conduit to the casing inlet and cutting oi! the suction nozzle, a brush in said nozzle, a rotatable member driven by said motor, means including a shiitable member for establishing a driving connection from said rotatable member to said brush, and a fluid pressure operated member operably connected to the nozzle and to said shiftable member and adapted to be moved by suction in said nozzle for operating the shiftable member to establish a driving connection between said rotatable member and said brush.

5. In a suction cleaner, a head comprising a fan casing, a motor housing carried by the tan casing and a suction nozzle connected to the fan casing inlet, a motor shaft projecting from 09- posite ends of the motor housing, a fan attached to one end of said shaft, a rotatable brush in said nozzle, a driving connection from the end of said motor shaft opposite that to which the fan is attached to said brush, a clutch controlling said drlving connection, and a'clutch actuator operably connected to said noale and clutch and movable in response to suction in said nozzle in a direction to engage said clutch.

. JAMES B. KIRBY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the tile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

